Digimon Appmon: Brain Draining
by LiquidPhazon
Summary: Continuing her career as an idol and with her popularity rising, Eri is booked on a quiz show, though with her lacking confidence in her intellect, she is given a brain training app, only the Appmon within is draining brains rather than training them and turns Eri to his latest victim, leaving her a stupified version of her past self, one Haru and the others must get back.


With another television performance over, Eri Karan walked off the stage with a continued smile, having talked with another amazing guest and gaining more fans.

"You were amazing, Eri-chan." Dokamon commented, remaining by his partner's side and remaining as proud of her as ever, which made Eri nod and smile back, glad she was able to continue to make others smile and continue in her career as an idol, her popularity ever increasing with every appearance she made.

"A fine job." Eri and Dokamon heard the voice of Eri's manager, Anezaki, say, where both looked to see the businesswoman approach the duo.

But in his un-Apperialzed form, Anezaki didn't see Dokamon and focused her attention completely on Eri.

"You have been doing a fine job these last few weeks, you should be very proud of yourself." Anezaki commented, she too remaining proud of all Eri had done.

"Thank you, Anezaki-san." Eri replied with a tone of respect, before saying confidently. "But I won't stop until I am the centre of the universe."

Smiling at Eri's continued determined personality, Anezaki withdrew her smartphone, displaying it to Eri, where she said. "And with that, I think I have something in mind."

Looking at the screen, Eri and Dokamon saw footage of a gameshow being played, where six contestants were standing behind their respective podiums as they were given various questions to answer.

And watching, both saw that those who answered correctly were rewarded ten points, while those who lacked the correct answer or didn't answer in time were penalized, losing five points for each question they failed to get correct.

Continuing to watch, Eri and Dokamon saw that amongst the six contestants, one, who had scored sixty was then brought to the stage, standing before a monitor, where it displayed a question about the capital of a nation Eri never even heard of, watching as the individual gave their answer, causing the question to fade away from the screen, replaced by a smiling emoji, before the area was filled with cheers and applause, while balloons and confetti rained down upon the being.

"And we have a new champion. Have a good night and thanks for watching Trivial Madness!" The voice of a male announcer called from Anezaki's smartphone, leaving Eri puzzled at what she had just seen, before letting out a confused. "Trivial Madness?"

Seeing Eri's confusion, Anezaki smiled and told her. "I managed to book an appearance for you. This time next week, you will be the celebrity contestant on Trival Madness, proving your own intelligence to all those watching."

From hearing what her manager had just said, Eri's expression turned to panic as she pulled her body back a little, seemingly frozen in fear.

'Me on a quiz show...?' Eri thought, before the image of her sitting at a pedestal with her name on it, zero points and a cone shaped cap on her head filled her mind, leaving her stuck in her worries, fearing the worst.

And while Eri remained frozen, floating over to her from his tiny pad, Dokamon waved his arms frantically before Eri's face, where he then yelled. "Eri-chan, snap out of it! You are smarter than you think."

"I can see you are a bit nervous, but you have a week to prepare." Anezaki said with a caring and understanding smile, before turning her smartphone to face her, tapping her finger along the screen, before holding it back to Eri, showing her all the apps on her phone, one of which caught Eri's eye, breaking her from her nervousness as she saw a small purple square with the image of a brain with a flexed arm by its side.

"I think this might help you." The businesswoman stated, continuing to show care and consideration for her client and telling Eri. "It's a brain training app. It was designed to help increase the overall IQ of those using the app. It starts off by giving you a test to determine a basis of your IQ before giving puzzles to keep your mind sharp."

"And after each test, the app automatically updates various facts." Anezaki said, tapping on the app, where Eri saw the screen change white, changing to what looked like a chalkboard and seeing writing appear upon the board, where it said, 'Every object in a state of uniform motion will remain in that state of motion unless an external force acts on it. -Issac Newton'.

"I'll download the app to your smartphone." Anezaki offered, smiling as she typed on her phone, causing a light to emanate from Eri's bag, where the pink haired girl reached in, pulling out her smartphone and seeing the app had been installed.

"Thank you, Anezaki-san." Eri said with a renewed smile, believing that with the brain app, she could prepare for the quiz show.

However, as she set her phone back in her bag, lifting up the app, a tiny Appmon grinned, looking forward to the trouble it was going to cause.

-Sometime later-

Having returned to the hidden section of the Kashinoki Books' library, Eri had just shared her news with Haru and the others, their expressions of amazement, while Eri had her arms crossed and a confident smirk on her face.

"So you're going to appear on Trivial Madness?" Haru asked, which made Eri nod, keeping up her confident smile, causing the hoping protagonist to smile, proud of his friend's accomplishment and adding. "That's great to know, Eri. And I know you'll do a great job."

"Of course Eri-chan will. Eri-chan can do anything she sets her mind to." Dokamon stated from his seat on the couch, remaining ever faithful to his partner and her talents.

While he too supported Eri, Gatchmon was interested in the concept of the game show, having never seen one while in the net, where he brought down his magnifying glass to gather what info he could.

"Trivial Madness is a game show where contestants use their knowledge to answer questions. The questions vary in terms of both topic and in difficulty, so there is no exact area of knowledge you can study upon to gain any advantage." Gatchmon informed as he read upon the data he gathered, causing Musimon to comment. "Since there's no way to know the questions, how are you going to prepare?"

"You could always ask Haru for help." All heard Ai's voice say in reply, causing the App Drivers and the Appmon to look over, where they saw the blonde making her way down the stairs, carrying down a plastic bag filled with various snacks for her guests, both human and Appmon.

"I apologize but I overheard the news when I was coming downstairs." Ai explained as she set the bag down, allowing her friends to eat, taking a seat herself as she looked at Haru, smiled and said. "Haru has been coming here almost everyday, reading all the books delivered to us, so he should have a great source of knowledge to share with you."

At Ai's suggestion, Haru blushed, somewhat embarrassed at the praise he was given, namely because it was given by the girl he had a crush on.

Rubbing the back of his head as everyone stared at him, all in agreement with Ai, through his modesty, Haru looked at Eri and said with his continued kindness. "I could give it a try."

"Thanks." Eri said in reply, only to draw her smartphone out, showing off the new app upon it and saying. "But I think I am covered."

With Eri showing off her smartphone, looking at the screen, Astora asked. "Brain Trainer?"

"It's an app my manager shared with my smartphone. With this I'll be smarter than ever." Eri said with a continued confidence in herself, continuing to show off the app, where Haru and the others saw that in the upper right of the corner were the words 'Eri's current IQ', while beside it was the number 98.

"This app provides me with puzzles and information for my brain to take in, making me smarter as I continue to use it. So I am confident I will be prepared for next week." The idol then told her friends, merely repeating what her manager had said, before setting her smartphone back within her bag, oblivious that as it remained active, the score of Eri's IQ slowly lowered, dropping by two points.

-Later that night-

As Dokamon had fallen asleep, resting within his App Chip, Eri lay on her bed, relaxing on her back and dressed in a white top and a pair of pink panties, the pink haired idol was in the middle of another puzzle, having not set down her smartphone after talking with Haru and the others.

"Ok. It wants me to make five arrows out of four." She read aloud, looking at the screen, displaying the image of four black arrows, all resting in the centre of the screen and pointing in all four directions.

Smiling as she believed she had figured out the answer to the puzzle, Eri ran her index finger along the arrows, preparing to arrange the four into a group and to line them alongside in order to form a fifth with their outline.

However, before Eri could finish the puzzle, the screen faded to white, flashing and revealing a spiral-like pattern, with a two bit animation brain decreasing in size, which caused her to gain a vacant expression as she looked upon the image, before shaking her head and seeing the arrow puzzle still unsolved.

Shaking her head, Eri returned her attention to the puzzle, but found she couldn't come up with an answer on how to solve it, noticing that her IQ rank had dropped down to 87, causing her to think with a growing frustration. 'I need to play more. I need to get smarter.'

However, as Eri continued to stare at the screen, continuing to indulge herself in the game, her IQ score continued to decrease.

Dropping... 85... Dropping... 83... Dropping...

-The next day-

Leaving Astora's residence, having just put away his filming equipment after his latest Apptube video, Astora, Musimon, Haru and Gatchmon began to head out, planning to make their way over to the Kashinoki Books, expecting to be greeted by Ai, her kind offering of Gatch Monka and Eri.

Curious, Astora set his hands behind his cap, walking alongside Haru as he asked. "So how do you think Eri is going with that brain training thing?"

"Eri is a focused and well disciplined person. I'm guessing her knowledge of all subjects will surprise even Haru." Gatchmon commented, hovering beside his partner upon his platform, causing Haru to smile and nod, eager to see whether or not Eri's overall knowledge had indeed increased.

"Maybe." Astora said nonchalantly

"But what are the odds of her being on a quiz show will be better than my latest Apptube video?" He then asked, holding his smartphone out and showing that though he had only uploaded it five minutes ago, he already had a thousand likes and followers.

"Help, help!" A familiar voice cried out, causing the two app Drivers and their partners to look to see Dokamon on his platform flying at them, a look of panic on his face as he managed to reach them.

"Dokamon?" Haru let out, concern filling him at the obvious distress the game Appmon was expressing, before asking. "What's wrong?"

"And where's Eri?" Gatchmon followed up, looking around but saw no sight of the young idol.

"I don't know what's causing it but something's wrong with Eri-chan. She's not acting like herself." Dokamon said in reply, continuing to express his concerns, which were now directed to his partner.

Wanting to help Dokamon, but wanting as much information to go by Gatchmon questioned. "What do you mean not acting like herself?"

"Ever since I woke up this morning, all Eri-chan has done is play that brain training game. She hasn't eaten, she hasn't changed clothes. And she was supposed to go to Applayama today, but she said she couldn't, she said that she needed to get smarter before she could do anything else." Dokamon informed in reply, where his concern was reached by the others, they too worried about the sudden change in Eri's behaviour.

"I don't like the sound of this." Haru said, expressing a fair amount of worry for their friend, before looking to Dokamon and asking. "Where is Eri now?"

"She's still in her room." Dokamon replied, turning around and floating off, proclaiming with a continued panic. "Hurry up! Eri-chan needs us!"

Not needing to be told a second time, Haru and the others made haste as they followed Dokamon, who lead the App Drivers and their Appmon through the city and to the apartment complex where Eri lived.

However, while making their way to Eri's, looking around, Gatchmon and Musimon noticed some of the residents acting a little strangely, noticing that a man in a business suit was standing before a vending machine, continuing to press his hand against the plastic, as if he was trying to get one of the beverages displayed, but had forgotten about the display glass to prevent theft.

The duo remained as confused to see a young woman in her car, tapping at the glass and asking for help as people walked past her, where the Appmon could see a set of car keys resting outside the vehicle.

And continuing to take in the sights, Gatchmon and Musimon saw a young couple outside the front of an electronics store, watching the televisions within, only they seemed cracked up by the weather channel, confusing some of those passing them by.

But what caught Gatchmon's attention was that everyone who had been acting off were holding a smartphone, all displaying the same logo of the brain training game Eri had displayed the day before, leaving the search Appmon wondering if the two shared a connection.

With Dokamon's guidance, Haru and the others took the service elevator and arrived at their destination, running down the hallway of the apartment complex until they came across Eri's apartment.

Though worried for her, Haru wanted to show his manners and was about to knock on the door, only for it to slowly slide open, confusing the others, until Dokamon explained.

"Normally Eri-chan's mother leaves the door unlocked as Eri-chan wishes her a good morning and to not work too hard, before Eri-chan then closes it and begins her day." The game Appmon said, his expression remaining worried to Eri's change in personality, before guiding Haru, Gatchmon, Astora and Musimon inside.

Closing the door behind them, the four found the living room to be of moderate size and quite clean, with Dokamon knowing it was because of Eri looking out for her mother and doing all she could to keep her mother smiling.

"Eri-chan, you have guests." Dokamon called, quickly remembering what the pink haired girl was wearing and adding. "So you might want to change before you do anything else."

"Leave me alone, Doka-dummy I'm trying to get smarter." Dokamon and the others heard Eri say, though her voice was a little less mature than usual.

"Doka-dummy?" Astora asked, before he commented. "You're right, that doesn't sound like Eri at all."

"Then if she won't come here, we'll go to her." Musimon said, his suggestion getting no complaints from Astora, before the duo headed to where they heard Eri's call, despite Haru, Gatchmon and Dokamon's protests.

"Eri, we're coming in and..." Astora began to say as he opened the door, before his face turned bright red, seeing Eri sitting on her bed, wearing only a shirt and panties as she looked absorbed in her smartphone app.

And while Astora and the others were left in surprise, Eri paid them no attention, letting out an annoyed groan as a buzz was heard from her smartphone, an indication she had failed the puzzle.

"I hate that stupid buzzing!" Eri whined at losing to another puzzle, before she stated. "It's like this mean game is making fun of me."

"Eri..." Haru let out, surprised by the idol's personality change, where she looked away from her smartphone, seemingly unfazed that the boys were staring at her half naked form and just said. "Oh? Hey there guys."

"Meanie puzzle. Stop being so hard or I'll Big Bang Punchie all the meanieness out of you!" Eri then yelled, immediately absorbing herself in the brain training game, before groaning again as the buzz sound filled her ears.

From his position, Musimon whispered to Astora. "She knows she arguing with a machine, right?"

However, Astora remained silent as he seemed a little distracted, remaining staring at Eri's body, his eyes wandering around her smooth and slender legs, while noticing how the top Eri wore was a little loose, allowing him to get a good view of her breasts, despite the part of his brain telling him to look away.

After failing another puzzle and another taunting buzz coming from her smartphone, Eri sighed, her attitude seemingly changing with each question she got wrong, as if she was losing her intelligence.

"Eri, we don't know what's going on, but maybe you should go outside and get some fresh air?" Astora suggested, moving closer and taking Eri's smartphone, which didn't abide too well with the pink haired girl.

"Hey!" Eri called at her property being taken from her, before stating. "Asta-kun, give that back or I'll Big Bang Punchie you after I make the brain app nicer to me."

However, looking at Astora, and with her current mindset, the expression on Eri's face changed to a smile as she rose from her bed, which made Astora and the others smile, thinking Eri was going to listen to her friends and take a break from her smartphone.

But all were in great surprise as Eri stood up and suddenly wrapped her arms around Astora's neck, holding him close as she looked at him with a sweet smile.

"Oh, Asta-kun, I had no idea how cute you can be." Eri said, stunning Astora, but not as much as when Eri moved her head forward, kissing the Apptuber, leaving all in awe at what had just happened, namely Astora, who could only stare at Eri with flushed cheeks and his mind still registering on what had just occurred.

Giggling at Astora, finding his surprise adorable, Eri commented with a peppyness in her tone. "Asta-kun, you're a good kisser. You made my lips all tingly."

"I... what, I...?" Astora tried to speak, but found his higher brain functions not working as he tried to process what had just happened, not noticing Eri take her smartphone back, turning her head down and resuming her game.

Stunned alongside the others at her actions, Dokamon floated beside his partner and questioned. "Eri-chan, why did you just do that?"

"I felt like it and it wound up making me feel good." Eri replied simply, giving a goofy smile as she spoke, before she set her smartphone down on the bed, looked at Astora and said. "Want to keep kissing? I want Asta-kun to make me feel happy again."

The next moment, Astora was on the floor, his face red and his eyes replaced with comic spirals as he passed out, his brain still unable to process everything that was happening.

However, while Eri had set her smartphone down, it began to message her, saying over and over. "Keep playing. Get smarter. Keep playing. Get smarter."

With the game seemingly commanding her, Eri nodded, turning her attention back at the device, where Haru and Gatchmon noticed that Eri's IQ status had dropped down significantly, dropping from its 98 mark and was now at 38, greatly confusing the duo.

"Thirty eight?" Gatchmon let out with confusion, before Musimon commented. "I thought Eri's IQ was way above that."

Agreeing with Musimon, Haru knew there was something wrong, something was clearly up with the brain training app, before he, Gatchmon and Musimon all saw a pair of transparent arms pull itself from out of Eri's smartphone and revealing its form.

"An Appmon!" Haru called, taken by surprise by the new Appmon as it jumped out of Eri's smartphone.

"This one's brain is almost empty. I'm off to refuel." The Appmon stated, before making a break for it, floating away and out of Eri's bedroom, out of her apartment, which caused Dokamon to say. "Whoever that guy is, he's the cause of Eri-chan's change in personality."

Looking back at Eri, Dokamon and the others saw the pink haired girl tapping at a now blank screen.

"Why isn't my smartyphone working?" Eri asked, shaking the device a little, before looking at her friends and asking with a cute expression. "Haru, you're smart, can you fix this problem?"

"We can, but we need your help." Gatchmon said in reply, not wanting to deceive Eri, but he knew it was the only way to get her back the old Eri.

"Ok. You can count on Eri's help." Eri replied with a great enthusiasm as she followed Haru, Gatchmon and the others out of her home, where Eri, grabbing the still unconscious form of Astora by his ankle, dragging him along, not minding as his head hit the corner of her doorways as they followed the mysterious Appmon.

After exiting the apartment as a group, with Astora regaining his composure, Eri looked at Haru with a curious expression.

"So what do we do now?" She asked, wanting to help in what she believed was Haru and Gatchmon's way to fix her smartphone, not noticing that she had exited and was standing in the streets half exposed.

"Leave that to me." Gatchmon said in reply, pulling down his magnifying glass, scanning the area, before seeing the retreating Appmon, seeing it leaping from smartphone to smartphone and noticing all those it leapt past shared the same puzzled expressions Eri had on her face.

"That way!" The search Appmon then yelled as the group gave chase, before Haru quickly blushed and realized Eri's state of dress, where he wanted to find the Appmon for dulling his friend's intelect, but he also didn't want her to continue roaming around half naked.

However, looking around, Haru noticed a coat lying on a bench, grabbing it as they went by.

"Here." He said, hading the coat to Eri, who looked at the clothing and asked. "What do I do with this?"

"Put it on." Musimon told the girl, before Astora added. "It's a crucial stage in repairing your smartphone."

"Okey dokey." Eri happily replied, believing Astora's obvious lie as she slipped the coat over her form, only to get her left arm caught in the clothing, leaving the brain drained girl in some panic as she flailed against the coat.

"Ah! It's trying to eat me!" Eri let out with a great panic in her voice, causing Haru and the others to sweatdrop at Eri's losing battle to clothing, before Astora grabbed at the sleeve, dragging Eri's still frantic form through the streets.

"It's ok, Eri. I've have you." Astora said, trying to keep the dull minded girl calmed in her current state, continuing to run along with Haru as the group chased the unknown Appmon, chasing the Appmon until they saw it rush through a purple coloured portal.

Knowing they were going in for a fight, Haru and Astora each withdrew their App Loaders, as did Eri, after being helped with her coat troubles, before the trio stepped in, seeing the world around them change, switching from the busy streets of Fujimizaka and to an area made of data, while before the App Drivers stood a gigantic library.

Looking at the library, Eri asked. "What are we doing here? Do I have to read any long books?"

"No. We're here to stop the Appmon who took away your smarts." Dokamon said in reply, his words causing Eri to nod, before she asked. "And then we can fix my smartphone?"

Sweat dropping at Eri's continued display of simplicity, Gatchmon was about to speak, but found he was cut in as he and the others all heard a menacing chuckle fill their ears, before the doors to the library opened up and out emerged the fleeing Appmon from before, where Haru and his friends were able to take in the Appmon's complete appearance.

Looking upon the Appmon, to the App Drivers, it looked like a giant brain being supported by a pair of muscular purple arms, but carefully looking under the brain, all could see an imp-like creature hanging from the bottom, giving off a sly smile as it stared at Haru and the others.

Keeping up his smile, the Appmon then said. "Greetings to you, both human and those created through the advances of artificial technology. Though you miscreants are intruders upon my domain, I welcome you to my alcove of archives, where all questions, riddles and alike have been collected and solved. The perfect realm for those thirsting for knowledge."

"Huh? What did the big brainy thing just say? Eri asked in confusion, which irritated the brain training Appmon at first, before grinning.

"It seems one of my devoted gamers has entered my domain." He commented, bringing up a computer tablet, where he began to run through a list of names, before displaying an image of Eri, as well as various facts, data and information about her, as well as displaying her IQ bar, showing it had dropped to 34 points.

"Eri Karan. Currently ranked 311th in the Appliyama 470 Club. Partner; Dokamon. Current Appmon in possession; Perorimon, Gomimon, Tellermon and Copieiemon. Hobbies include cooking, singing and fighting against Leviathan." The Appmon said, leaving Haru and the others stunned at all the information he had gathered on Eri, while Eri herself seemed a little distracted, where the stupified girl was lying on her stomach as she flipped through the pages of one of the many books scattered through the area.

"This book doesn't have many pictures, but the ones I found are really pretty." Eri stated, ignoring the words of the book she was reading and causing the Appmon to snap. "Hey! Are you even listening to me!?"

From the distraction, wanting to know who they were dealing with, Haru asked. "Gatchmon, who is this guy?"

Acting fast, Gatchmon set his magnifying glass down and over his left eye, analyzing the Appmon.

"Bramon. With brain training based abilities." Gatchmon informed, causing the Appmon now known as Bramon to renew his grin, looking upon Gatchmon and Haru.

"And you are Gatchmon, an Appmon who specializes in search based applications and fighting. Special attack: Gatch Claw. Favourite food: Gatch Monka. Partner: Haru Shinkai, age fourteen. Hobbies include reading, soccer and proving he can be a protagonist." Bramon said, stunning Gatchmon at the information Bramon had access to.

A little surprised himself, from his platform and turning his attention from the carefree form of his partner, Dokamon asked. "How did he know all that?"

"There is so much I already know, but thanks to those unsuspecting humans who use my brain draining/training app, my knowledge continues to expand. Everything I know has made me the smartest Appmon in the net, and should I continue to use these humans, I will become the smartest being in both realities." Bramon declared, causing Dokamon's hands to clench and shake.

"You used Eri-chan!" Dokamon said as he glared at the brain training Appmon, before snapping. "You tricked her just so you could become smarter!"

"Stealing other's smarts to make yourself smarter?" Musimon asked as he looked at Astora.

"Groovy?" Astora asked, posing his middle and ring fingers down, raising his hands, starting off his review routine with Musimon.

"Not Groovy?" Musimon asked back, mimicking Astora's movements, before both brought their hands down and declared with a lacking enthusiasm. "So not Groovy."

"Whether or not my measures to gain intelligence are groovy or not do not concern me." Bramon commented, not caring about Astora and Musimon's opinions.

"In fact, my IQ just increased by three points during your childish antics." The brain training Appmon then said, looking upon his tablet with a grin, before looking upon Eri's displayed IQ bar, seeing it had dropped by three points.

"At this rate your friend will lose all her brainpower in approximately forty minutes." Bramon then said, causing Gatchmon to snap back. "Not unless we stop you."

Turning to his partner from his platform, Gatchmon quickly said. "Haru, Apperize me!"

Nodding to Gatchmon's words, Haru prepared both his App Drive and DoGatchmon's Chip, before placing DoGatchmon's Chip inside his App Drive.

"Apperialize!" The voice of the App Drive called enthusiastically, not only giving Gatchmon a physical form, but his Super Grade form, where the Apperialized Appmon appeared and announced. "DoGatchmon!"

With DoGatchmon before Haru, Bramon turned his attention to his computer tablet, gathering all the data he could on his opponent.

"DoGatchmon. A Super Grade Appmon that was created originally through the App Fusion of Gatchmon and Navimon. Power level: Seven thousand five hundred." Bramon read aloud, grinning as he stated. "But nothing I cannot handle through calculation and pre battle knowledge."

"We'll see about that!" Musimon said back, before looking at Astora, where the pair gave each other a thumbs up and joined Haru and DoGatchmon in the fight.

Drawing out his own App Drive and the App Chip containing Mediamon's data, Astora wasted no time as he set the App Chip within, giving back Musimon his physical form, as well as a boost in strength.

"Mediamon!" The entertainment Appmon announced as he made his appearance, ready to fight and lay down some beats along the way.

With DoGatchmon and Mediamon called out to battle Bramon, Dokamon was expecting Eri to Apperailze him, to bring out Dosukomon to the fight, but found her staring at the Appmon with an amazed expression.

"Haru and Asta-kun made cutie Appmon all big now." She said as she examined the Appmon, highly distracted by their change in form, but namely at how DoGatchmon's amour allowed herself to see her reflection within the shine.

"Eri-chan, try and focus." Dokamon called, floating over to his distracted partner, where he told her. "You have to Apperailize me so we can fight and make you smart again."

"O...ok..." Eri said, only to look at Dokamon, running her hand through her transparent form and asking. "But how do I do that?"

"Place the Dosukomon App Chip in your App Drive and Apperialize me." Dokamon explained, where he saw Eri tilt her head in a cute and confused way, before the gaming Appmon said. "I know it sounds hard right now, but trust me, Eri-chan."

As Eri followed Dokamon's instructions, drawing out her App Drive and about to place the Dosukomon App Chip within the device, Bramon decided to intervene.

"Before you make that choice, consider this. Fighting means giving orders, which means using your brain, which will waste time when you could be playing my brain training game." He said, causing Eri to lower Dosukomon's App Chip, leaving Dokamon in his transparent state.

Confused and worried for his partner, Dokamon asked. "Eri-chan, why'd you stop?"

"Bramon's right. Fighting is gonna make my head all hurty." Eri replied giddily, shocking Dokamon and the others that Bramon was continuing to exploit Eri's drained intelect in order to gain an advantage in their oncoming battle.

"Then it looks like it's just you and me." DoGatchmon said to Mediamon, frustrated that Eri was being played and that they couldn't rely on Dokamon in his current stated.

But looking at the IQ bars around the area, seeing them all slowly decreasing, with Eri's dropping to 29, DoGatchmon knew they had to act fast before all of Eri's brain was emptied.

"I can rap with that, yo." Mediamon said in reply, he too was eager to put an end to Bramon's scheming and return Eri back to her normal self.

However, being the devious genius he was now known as, Bramon issued several commands in his computer tablet, causing three dimensional screens to emerge from the ground, appearing before him, DoGatchmon and Mediamon.

Confused, Mediamon asked. "What's with this?"

"Before we dish it out like a couple of ruffians, there are a few rules to this fight." Bramon told the Appmon, which left Astora rubbing his head and asking. "Rules?"

"Before any of us can declare an attack, a random question will be displayed upon each of our monitors." Bramon said, before explaining with a confident grin. "If you answer a question correctly, you are free to attack, but answer wrong and you will be penalized."

"We don't have time for questions!" DoGatchmon yelled, jumping into the air and preparing to attack.

"DoGatch Buster!" The social Appmon announced, bringing out the four green pointers from off of his body, gathering his energy within the centre and casting off a beam of blue energy, striking Bramon.

However, shock filled DoGatchmon and the others as the attack struck Bramon, but it seemed to do no harm to his being whatsoever.

"What!? It didn't affect him!" DoGatchmon let out, confused as to why his attack seemed to just pass off of Bramon's form.

"I told you that we can only attack after the questions are answered." Bramon said simply, grinning as he then told DoGatchmon and Mediamon. "Now let us begin."

Growling in frustration, but knowing they had no choice, DoGatchmon and Mediamon nodded, playing along with Bramon's little game, before looking at the screens before them, each displaying the first question.

'Who came up with the theory of relativity?'

Reading the question, DoGatchmon and Mediamon were uncertain of the answer, before both heard a buzzing sound come from Bramon's screen, seeing the brain training Appmon his hand upon the screen.

"Too easy. The answer is Albert Einstein." Bramon said arrogantly, causing a green check to appear upon his screen, while red crosses appeared on DoGatchmon and Mediamon's, before both cried out as red electricity shot from their screens, striking the duo.

"Mediamon!" Astora called in concern at seeing his partner in pain, before he and Haru heard Bramon laugh.

"I told you there would be penalties." Bramon said, looking at his fallen foes with a continued dark grin as he commented. "But I wonder just how long will the two of you last in our contest of wits."

"Don't give up big brother." Dokamon called from the sides.

"Eri-chan is counting on you." The game Appmon then said, looking with worry at his partner and seeing her playing with a thin line of paper in a book, causing a pop-up image to go up and down, amusing the stupefied girl.

Rising up, DoGatchmon and Mediamon prepared themselves for the next question, determined to save Eri's mind, as well as all those back in the Real World who were being drained of their intelligence.

However, their determination was not enough, for the questions continued to fall into Bramon's victory, managing to answer them with ease or before either could give an answer of their own, leaving DoGatchmon and Mediamon panting heavily as they pulled themselves back up.

"Let's see what the next question is." Bramon said, enjoying the game, but more at seeing his opponents losing to his genius.

But through his pain, DoGatchmon stated. "Whatever it is, we will get it. We won't give up until we stop you."

"Seems you two have some spirit remaining." Bramon said, before grinning and stating. "But this game is already mine, you just don't know it yet."

Keeping up his grin, Bramon looked upon the screen, seeing the next question already revealed to him.

'The icicles of a limestone cave roof are better known as...'

Seeing the question, Bramon grinned, bringing his hand down and was about to answer, only to stop as he heard a buzz coming from DoGatchmon and Mediamon's side, expecting DoGatchmon to have been lucky enough to have answered first.

However, he, as well as Haru and DoGatchmon were surprised to see Mediamon was the one who had buzzed, believing he knew the answer.

'As if that simpleton could know the answer. He must be bluffing.' Bramon though, continuing to believe his brilliance was unmatched.

That was until Mediamon gave his answer.

"Stalactites. They are rocky tiles which can go on for miles. And then there are stalagmites that stand around, only those kinds of rock expand from the ground." Mediamon answered in the form of a small rap, leaving most of the group, save Eri who was no longer paying attention, dumbfounded that he knew the answer as a check mark appeared on the boards for him and DoGatchmon.

And with their side getting the answer correct, a red cross appeared on Bramon's screen, before he cried out as he was electrocuted.

"Doesn't feel too good when you get a taste of your own medicine." Astora stated, before looking at Mediamon and giving his partner a thumbs up, the actions Mediamon copied.

Though glad they weren't on the receiving end of the penalty, Haru had to ask. "Mediamon, how did you know that?"

"I learnt about it while Astora and I were watching Apptube videos. He was preparing for a geography test, and we came across this video explaining all about caves and minerals. It was pretty groovy." Mediamon replied, which made Astora grin and add. "Thanks to that vid, I got a ninety seven perecent on my test. My dad and Jenny were so proud."

While surprised Astora had gained so much information from such a surprising location, Haru smiled nonetheless.

However, the positivity in the atmosphere changed when Bramon snarled and suddenly snapped.

"No! I refuse to allow this! Nobody can be smarter than me!" He yelled, his brain throbbing as if reflecting his anger and his refusal to accept a loss, before showing just how big of a sore loser he was as he punched new commands into his tablet, before a wall of flame erupted between him, DoGatchmon and the others.

Worried for his friends, Haru let out. "What are you doing!?"

"If I destroy you, I can still be the smartest Appmon around." Bramon replied, before all but yelling. "Now perish in the flames of the smartest mind in all creation!"

Continuing to allow his rage to consume him, the flames intensified, circling around Haru and the others, trapping the App Drivers and their partners.

Looking at the inferno circling his being, feeling the heat continuing to grow, Haru began to sweat, both from the temperature and their ever growing despair.

"This isn't good, we have to stop him!" The green haired boy stated, knowing that they needed to find a way to cool down Bramon before it was too late.

"Scary fire! Too hot! Make it go away!" Eri cried out, she too panicking, though she seemed more afraid of the sight of the fires than what would happen if they remained.

"Don't worry, Eri-chan, I will protect you." Dokamon promised, trying to keep his partner calmed.

"And if you're getting hot, take off that coat." The game Appmon then suggested, hoping to divert Eri's seemingly shrinking attention away from the great danger she was in.

"Whatever you say, Doka-smarty." Eri replied with an ignorant smile, trusting Dokamon as she slid her hands under the bottom of the coat and began to pull it upward.

However, grabbing her top along the way, Eri removed the clothing off of her being, pulling off all but her bra, leaving the numb minded idol standing near naked, showing off her beautiful figure, astonishing Astora at seeing Eri nearly naked.

"Doka-smarty was right. Eri feels cooler now." Eri said happily, before looking at her body, seeing she was still sweating, before a misled idea came to her.

"Maybe taking off more clothing will make Eri feel even cooler." The brain drained girl then said with a continued smile as she grabbed at her bra, about to pull it off as well, before Dokamon looked at Eri with shock and acted as fast as he could, frantically waving his hands around, begging her to stop.

With Dokamon doing all he could to try and keep Eri under control and Astora still in his stupor, Haru knew he and DoGatchmon had to act, they had to figure a way to put an end to Bramon's rage.

"DoGatchmon, we need to come up with some way to cool Bramon's brain down." Haru called, certain that if they could get Bramon to calm down, than his rage fires would die down, causing DoGatchmon to nod on reply, before acting alongside his partner.

Acting fast, a screen appeared before Haru, where he began typing, wanting to know how to put an end to Bramon's misdeeds, causing the words to appear on the black line of DoGatchmon's head.

"Search words confirmed. Let's go into the sea of the net!" DoGatchmon then announced, detaching the green points from off of his body, where they formed a circle beneath him, spinning around at a rapid pace and forming a portal of light.

"Super Search! Deep Dive!" The social Appmon went on, jumping within the portal, where he found himself swimming through a massive surge of pure data itself, before coming across a gigantic orb, the key to defeating Bramon.

Grabbing the orb, Dogatchmon swam upward, returning to the AR field and shared the new information with his partner.

"DoGatch Catch!" He called, shattering the orb, where its data rained down upon the area, giving Haru and DoGatchmon their answer.

"Now it's filling with shiny rain." Eri called with a simplistic cheer, giving off a continued smile, while Dokamon smiled as well, knowing Bramon's defeat was soon to come.

With the answer to put a hold on Bramon's brain, Haru spoke up.

"Bramon! You claim to be the smartest and we'll accept that, but only if you can answer one question." The aspiring protagonist said.

Calming down a little, causing the flames to back away from his enemies, Bramon looked at Haru with some curiosity, before asking. "I have access to the knowledge of all of human history stored in my mind, I can answer any question you give me. So what do you want to know?"

Smiling, Haru then asked. "Tell me, which came first, the chicken or the egg?"

Keeping his own smile, Bramon began to give his answer. "Another question easily answered. It is obviously..."

However, Bramon stopped speaking, for conflicting sides to both choices began to fill his head.

"It has to be the chicken. It is a lifeform, but a lifeform come from creation, which would mean it is the egg. But where did the egg come from? It had to be hatched if it were to exist, which would mean the answer is chicken again. But how did this first rhetorical chicken come into existence without being hatched?"

Puzzled by what he had been asked and looking at his tablet, trying to determine an answer to Haru's question, the flames reflecting Bramon's anger finally died down, not only ensuring the safety of Haru and his friends, but it allowed DoGatchmon and Mediamon to attack.

"Your future is already searched! Take this! DoGatch Buster!" DoGatchmon announced, holding nothing back as he brought his points in the centre of his being, concentrating his power and releasing it all as one line of energy.

"Sometimes it's better to leave things the way they are." Mediamon added, before he too attacked.

"Howling Blast!" The media player Appmon called, firing a supersonic pulse from the speakers cast along his arms, legs and chest, launching his attack alongside DoGatchmon's, which caught Bramon's attention, just as he was engulfed by the set of attacks, leaving him crying out. "I can't believe I was outsmarted by the likes of you!"

With his defeat, his body purged itself of the L-Virus that had infected him, before a countdown automatically reset his body, going from three, two, one, where Bramon gave a more calmed smile and said. "It feels so good to be released from such a meticulous hold. It feels as though I was renewed myself. Whether it was the chicken or the egg, it doesn't matter anymore."

Finished in his relaxed speech, Bramon reverted to data and was absorbed into Haru's App Loader, converted into another App Chip, causing the green haired boy to withdraw the chip and smile.

"Check it out! The IQs are going back up." Mediamon then pointed out, causing Haru and DoGatchmon to look over, noticing all who had been influenced during Bramon's brain training game were returning back to their original IQ status, with Eri's raising from its diminished 26 and back to its rightful 98.

As her IQ returned to normal, Eri blinked her eyes a few times, gaining a confused look on her face as she questioned. "Why am I here? I remember trying that new brain training app and..."

As the memories returned to her, Eri instantly blushed, before looking down, letting out a shriek as she tried to cover her near naked body, before her eyes widened even more as she remembered what she did with Astora, letting out another loud screech as she cried out to the blond staring at her. "Don't look at me, Astora, you pervert! If you keep staring at me I'll give you a Big Bang Punch right to your head!"

From Eri's attitude, Dokamon's face lit with joy.

"Eri-chan, you're back!" He cheered, wanting to give his partner a big hug, even if he was in a transparent state, but stopped as Eri held her hand up and glared at him.

"And you better be careful as well..." Eri said with a seriousness, before smiling with care as she added. "Doka-chan."

-The next week-

From their small hideout beneath the bookshop, Haru, Astora, Ai and all the Appmon they had obtained, lacking Eri's, but now including Bramon, were watching the television set up within the room, all cheering Eri on as she was on the screen, appearing as the celebrity contestant of Trivial Madness.

"It was sweet of you to help Eri out, Haru." Ai commented with a warm smile, remembering that after the effects of Bramon had wore off, that Eri had accepted Haru as her teacher, where the blonde remembered watching as Haru and Eri sat at one of the library tables, spending many hours revising all kinds of facts, history and dates that the longing protagonist believed would be of help to Eri's overall genius, making Eri smile at all she had learnt from her friend.

"It was nothing." Haru said in reply, continuing to be modest, before Gatchmon cut in, surprise filling his voice as he pointed to the screen and said. "Check it out. Eri has the highest score."

Looking at the TV, all saw that out of the six competing within the quizshow, Eri had a total of one hundred points, leaving all amazed, before watching as the pink haired idol was brought to the monitor, where her question was to be issued.

Upon the board, it read. 'What species of butterfly were seen caught by Apptuber, Astora?'

At seeing the question, a surprised expression graced Eri's face, before she smiled and gave her answer.

"Trick question. The species wasn't even known before Astora unknowingly uploaded his video to Apptube." Eri said, before raising her right arm, closing her eyes and declaring with a great confidence and a matching smile. "And if I'm wrong, I'm gonna give you all a Big Bang Punch!"

As she remained in her pose, Eri unsure if her answer would be accepted.

Her eyes remained closed as she waited to hear whether she was right or if she was wrong.

But after all she had been through the last week, Eri no longer cared.

She had a great time on the quizshow, she had fun with Haru and Gatchmon, both boys doing all they could to help improve Eri's knowledge, feeling all her hard work had paid off and left her better for the experience.

However, the sound of applause gave Eri her the answer, causing the young idol to open her eyes and look upon the audience, seeing them all cheering, seeing many of her fans showing their support with banners of encouragement, before turning to the monitor, where Eri's face lit up as she saw a smiling emotion and animation fireworks, indicating she was right.

"Congratulations, Eri Karan. You are this week's Trivia Champion!" The announcer of the show called, continuing to hype up the crowd, who cheered louder for the pink haired girl, causing Eri to smile at all those she had brought smiles to, while in her mind she knew she had to thank Haru, Astora and all the others for their help and their encouragement.

And while Eri was celebrating her victory, as too were her friends, where Astora and Musimon rose from their seats, cheering loudly.

"She did it! So groovy!" Both called with a continued enthusiasm, which filled the other humans and Appmon, causing Haru to smile and state. "And in a way, you two helped."

"Haru's right." Gatchmon said, backing up Haru, before resting his arms behind his head and commenting as he gave himself some encouragement. "But I am confident Eri would've gotten the final question thanks to our help."

While the group continued to cheer for Eri's victory, Haru continued to smile, not only proud at Eri, at how far she was going and how bright her future looked, but he knew that when Eri would get back, there would be no doubt that a party would be thrown in her honour, leaving the aspiring protagonist looking at the television screen as Eri smiled and waved to her fans.


End file.
